The International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by the United Nations General Assembly. Two decades later, in 2001, the General Assembly unanimously voted to designate the Day as a period of non-violence and cease-fire. I'm a Quaker (The Religious Society of Friends) and central to our faith is the The Peace Testimony. I was fortunate as […]
I read that after the Netflix series The Queen's Gambit there was a run on chess sets … and I hope that's true! This blog celebrates International Chess Day, on July 20th. But it's also a nod to librarian John P., who not only blogged for many years at the Library, but is also a […]
As he lay dying in hospital, my father's arm moved back and forth and he quietly moaned. His eyes were closed and he was unconscious with a brain bleed. I leaned down and whispered in his ear how much I loved and respected him and I would protect him. And I did until he died. […]
If you like milk then please say Moooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! June 1 is World Milk Day. Created in 2001 by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, it's a day to recognize the importance of milk. Milk is a global food and the dairy industry employs many people around the world. That's a very official […]
May 1st is known world wide as May Day, and celebrated as International Labor Day. To help celebrate May Day, I thought it would be interesting to look at some Canadian labour history. Working Lives: Essays in Canadian Working-Class History: Craig Heron is one of Canada's leading labour historians…Working Lives covers a wide range […]
For Black History Month, here are some titles about our province's richly diverse past. For other reading lists and upcoming programs, see our Black History and Culture page. Also be sure to check out our Rita Cox Black and Caribbean Heritage Collection. I've Got a Home in Glory Land: A Lost Tale of the Underground […]
This January 17 would have been the wonderful Betty White's 100th birthday. She died, with impeccable timing, on New Year's Eve (great for the news cycle). She was a gifted comedian, well known for her roles on Mary Tyler Moore Show, Golden Girls and more recently Hot in Cleveland. But she actually had her own […]
For Black History Month I would like to share some titles about our province's richly diverse past. Please see our Black history and Culture page for other reading lists and programs and find out more about our Rita Cox Black and Caribbean Heritage Collection. I've Got a Home in Glory Land: A Lost Tale of the Underground Railroad […]
I used to be a great letter writer and postcard sender, although now I enjoy texting more than putting pen to paper. Luckily for us, people in earlier times did write letters instead of email and text, and folks valued and kept them. There is nothing in my mind more enjoyable than reading other people's […]
In honour of Remembrance Day, I am sharing a diverse mix of more visual Canadian material on World War One (WW1). Canadian WW1 poster. View on Digital Archive Ontario. Visual Books They Fought in Colour / La Guerre en couleur: A New Look at Canada's First World War Effort / Nouveau regard sur le […]